Most people going into the vegan lifestyle think they are going to lose those comforting dishes that they have grown up with all their lives...my goal has always been to never sacrifice that comfort in pursuit of a vegan recipe & so far I have never met a dish I couldn't conquer.

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Friday, March 8, 2013

Vegan Raviolis

Vegan Raviolis

The king of comfort is pasta but when you pair that with luscious cheese and top it with a sauce of your choice...well then I think that comfort just went to heaven. Raviolis are like little pillows of heaven filled with homemade vegan ricotta and covered in a homemade vegan pasta dough as well. This recipe shows an easy and cheaper way to get a perfect vegan ravioli that will impress and satisfy. Serve with a nice garden salad and some homemade garlic bread (recipe on Blog), you will be all set for your Italian night in. Enjoy!Vegan RaviolisIngredients
-1/2 cup vegan ricotta (Recipe listed below)
-Vegan Pasta Dough (Recipe Listed below)

-1 Jar of your Favorite Pasta Sauce (You could also do a garlic and oil sauce also)
-Serve with vegan Parmesan and/or Bake with Daiya or your favorite vegan cheese

In a medium sauce pot bring the coconut milk, vinegar, salt & pepper, and agar agar powder to a light boil. Once it starts to boil lightly for about 1 to 2 minutes.

Pre-Boiled Ricotta Mixture

Boiled Ricotta Mixture

Seasoned Mixture

Remove it from the heat and stir in the nutritional yeast and herbs. Whisk until the ingredients combine and nutritional yeast dissolves. Once combined, pour into a glass storage dish and place in refrigerator to set up and gel for a couple hours or even over night.

Once the mixture is set up and gelled, use a fork to break up the mixture into a smooth and not lumpy consistency Once smooth, Add in your vegan Daiya cheese and place back in the refrigerator until you need to use it for the raviolis.

In a food processor blend together The Vegg, Ener-G, and 3/4 cup water until combined together and mixed throughout. Set aside to use when flour is ready.

In a Kitchen Aid mixer fitted with a dough hook (this could also be done by hand on your counter top), Pour 2 cups of flour into the mixer with salt and mix to combine. Once flour and salt are combined, slowly mix in half of your "egg" mixture and blend scrapping down the sides a bit. Then add in the rest of your "egg" mixture and combine until it forms a ball (scraping bottom and sides as needed). This mixture is still going to be tacky and not fully together (with regular flour). You can now add water and flour as needed. I found that 1/4 cup water add brings the mixture together and 1 Tbsp flour makes the dough soft and silky. The dough shouldn't stick to the sides of the bowl or your fingers. Add more or less flour & water to get this consistency.

Remove the dough and place it in plastic wrap and then the refrigerator if you want to use it later. For immediate use or after refrigeration place dough onto well flours counter or cutting board with a damp towel over it and let it rest for around 45 minutes before making the raviolis.

Vegan Ravioli Directions

Making the Ravioli

To form the ravioli, cut the dough into 4 evenly sized pieces. Add extra flour as necessary for rolling, but use only a little as necessary. Form each piece into a 2 by 6-inch rectangle. Recover the dough with the plastic wrap.

Lightly dust the work surface and a rolling pin. Working with 1 piece of dough at a time, roll the dough into a 4 by 19-inch rectangle. Place 9 rounded teaspoons of filling about 1-inch apart down the center of the dough. Fold the dough over the filling. Press down around the edges of each of the ravioli with your fingertips. Cut the ravioli into small circles or squares and press down around the edges again with your fingertips or fork to seal. Place the finished ravioli on a baking tray and continue forming the remaining ravioli using the same method as before.

Pierce each Ravioli around to insure no leaks

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add half the ravioli and cook until the ravioli float stirring occasionally, about 3 to 4 minutes. Remove cooked Raviolis with a sieve, frying spider, or slotted spoon and cook the remaining ravioli.

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About Me

My name is Amy, I am a stay at home mom of a beautiful 8 year old son named AJ and Identical Twin Boys named Archer & Asher. I also have a very supportive and always hungry hubby named Adam, he is my taste tester...its a tough job but someone has to do it. It has been 12 years since going vegan and I've loved every second.

I started my journey as a vegan after finding out (after be sick constantly) that I cannot eat any animal products. I don't have the enzyme to break it down the protein in my stomach, so I get extremely sick. After much research, I discovered veganism and decided to change my lifestyle. But I still wanted to enjoy the same foods I always had growing up. I started cooking more and more after that. I grew up enjoying cooking but becoming vegan made it more fun and exciting, so many opportunities to experiment with different products.

My other story is my medical journey. I have always struggled with medical problems, but my worst was in my early 20's. In 2007, I had my first blood clot (Leg/Heart/Lungs) and almost died. This continued again numerous times before and after my son was born, being hospitalized many times and almost dying again in 2010 after a serious problem that resulted in internal bleeding/blood clots and in turn blood transfusions. After my last bout in 2010, I struggled a lot and cooking made things more comforting. Even if I couldn't walk and breath well at the time, I could sit and watch TV and in turn I became a FoodTV addict. Watching these shows constantly made me think..."why can't these recipes just be made vegan?" So in turn I started making them vegan when my health started to improve. I started converting over everything, from family & friends recipes and even old restaurant favorites. Overall, my struggles have made me the person I am today and that journey has made me stronger and more dedicated to my future and a better mom.

Weight Loss

I was a VERY obese child/teen/adult, basically my whole life. I weighed at my highest, 408lbs. But after diet changes (vegan) and weight-loss surgeries, I have lost a little over 170lbs. I have always loved food and cooking, but changing my lifestyle over in two ways (vegan & weight-loss surgeries) makes you look at food differently. Its not only comforting but its also fuel and it helps your body in the long run. I wanted my fuel to help me and not hold me back. I still enjoy treat and vegan junk food but balance in my life became key to my success.

How I Started

I started The Comforting Vegan after years of being asked over and over again for recipes to the foods/meals I would post nightly on Facebook. Time and time again I would tell them..."Its a family secret" or "I don't give out recipes". I was very secretive of them and looking back now, I don't know why. But after much convincing I decided to give a Blog a try. Much to my surprise people have loved it and as they say "And that was history".

Home Life

My job first and foremost is being a mom of my 8 year old son AJ and my Twin Boys Archer & Asher. AJ is not only a sweet and silly little boy but also has special needs. He has a genetic chromosomal mutation (17p13) and makes him developmental delayed as well as severe scoliosis, which requires him to have serious back surgery every 6 months. So he keeps me very busy. But with all that busyness I have much joy from his daily milestones and the overall goofy little man that he is. Having a child like AJ only makes me work harder and my first goal is just to make him happy and proud. A big surprise happened to us after our wedding in 2016, we found our we were pregnant! A shocking thing to say the least, but the shock would grow when we discovered just a couple short weeks later that we were having TWINS! After a wonderful vegan pregnancy our boys were born at 39wks, perfectly

Healthy and weighing in at 7lbs & 7.11lbs (20.5 inches each). They're growing biggest and smarter everyday and loving their big brother AJ even more. We're glad AJ will always have 2 amazing little brothers to watch out for him.

My Motto

"Most people going into the vegan lifestyle think they are going to lose those comforting dishes that they have grown up with all their lives...my goal has always been to never sacrifice that comfort in pursuit of a vegan recipe & so far I have never met a dish I couldn't conquer."